NATCHEZ — No matter how long you spent carving just the perfect scraggly tooth into your pumpkin, he only has a few more days of glory left.

Face it, by Monday the jack-o-lantern will be a bit out of style.

And even if you opted to keep your pumpkin whole this year, it can only serve as a fall decoration for so long.

So, what’s next? The trash heap?

Not so fast. Depending on what kind of condition your little orange guy is in, he may still have some worthwhile purposes.

Try one of these ways to get rid of your pumpkin this year:

Eat it

Pumpkins and their parts can turn into a variety of edible goodness.

For most recipes you’ll want to make sure your pumpkin is still fresh. And eating jack-o-lanterns may not be the best option.

The large pumpkins we commonly use for decorations aren’t good for cooking, local chef Doug Hosford said.

But their seeds are yummy.

Hosford recommended roasting the pumpkin seeds and seasoning them with your favorite spice. The Hosford family did just that last year, and son Jack went to school with pumpkin seeds the next day.

“We roasted them, took them out and tossed them with butter,” Hosford said. “Sprinkle on brown sugar, salt or pumpkin pie spice, just how much you want. Then, roast for a few more minutes.”

The Hosfords have also tried balsamic vinegar seeds.

If you’ve decorated with a type of pumpkin called pie pumpkins, your options are greater.

These are the smaller, softer, rounded pumpkins often found in grocery stores, Hosford said.

Wash and quarter these pumpkins, he said, then roast the pieces. They can be used for everything from ice cream to soup. The most common use, of course, is pumpkin pie.

Plant it

Though November isn’t prime pumpkin planting season, it’s still worth a try.

Remove the seeds from the slimy insides, clean them and plant them in small pots, said Ashley Powell, family and consumer science agent at the LSU Ag Center in Concordia Parish.

After the frost season is over, move the seeds into the ground in the backyard.

You’ll want to protect them from the frost, then cross your fingers and hope for the best, Powell said.

“They are a hearty plant,” Powell said. “But whether they produce or not is something different.”

Powell has tried the experiment in years past, and said it’s a good learning lesson for children.

“(Children) are interested in knowing what can be done with them,” she said. “We try to teach our kids not to be too wasteful with anything.”

If you opt to hang on to the seeds until planting season — mid-June through July — beware of mildew, Powell said.

Trash it

Pumpkins, like most other food bits, make great food for the compost pile.

Clean out the candles, wax or other decorations that may have fallen inside.

Break it apart into smaller parts and add it to a pre-existing compost pile, start a new one or bury it in the garden.

The decaying pumpkin will enrich the soil.

Smash it

If all else fails, have a little fun.

Lift the pumpkin high over your head, think of something that stresses you out and smash it toward the ground with as much force as you can.

Take a few minutes to survey your damage then, get a broom.

Just remember one thing, Police Chief Mike Mullins said, smash YOUR pumpkin, not someone else’s.

“Tearing up your own stuff is not a crime,” he said. “Just play music from the Smashing Pumpkins while you do it.

“After all, pumpkins are not an endangered species.”